Last Chance Cling
by SonicKnuxMiku25096
Summary: Knuckles decided to move out of Angel Island to begin a temporary life. He wants to hang out with Sonic more and meet new people. He makes a new best friend, Tara, who he rooms with in his apartment. But there's a reason why Knux is getting out more. A reason that he will tell no one.
1. Prologue, Chapters 1 and 2

Last Chance Cling

~Knuckles' POV~

Prologue:

I found myself dragging my suitcase up the 5-star stairs of the Sand Dollar. I read the key again. 735. I was almost on the floor now. Apparently I was going to have a roommate… But I didn't know who it was. This was the first time I had ever moved out of Angel Island. I was kind of nervous…

You see, I had gotten really bored on the island all by myself. In all honesty, there wasn't much to do. So, I decided to move to an apartment for a little while, just to get out and see other people for a while. Yeah, I wasn't the most social person on Mobius, but I didn't want to just be forever alone. I had heard that Sonic was staying somewhere nearby for the time being. I figured I should at least start by hanging out with someone I knew. I was pretty sure that Sonic and I were on good terms… He still calls me buddy and considers me his best friend… I think…

Anyways, I was heading down the expensive apartment hallway when I finally found it. Three gold numbers were nailed onto the door. I put the key in the lock and turned it. I slowly opened the door. As soon as I flipped on the light switch, my eyes widened. I couldn't help but let out a whistle.

The whole apartment was _gorgeous! _It was everything I imagined would be in either a 5-star hotel, but more like a permanent home. And it had all cost me practically nothing. Being the Guardian of Angel Island had its benefits.

I decided to make myself at home by setting my suitcase down in a room that was located to the left of the living room. I still had no idea who my roommate was though… I didn't really have much in my luggage since I wore the same thing every day. But I did have a few of my valuable stuff that I didn't want to get stolen, other than the Master Emerald, of course. I started putting pictures on the dresser when I heard someone unlocking the door. I went out into the living room as I heard the person come into the room. She closed the door behind her. She looked over and saw me standing there. She smiled sweetly.

"Hi," she greeted.

"H-Hi…" I said back shyly. Crap. A girl. I already didn't talk to people that much as it was, but I was ok with talking to other guys. It was girls I had trouble with. I was always so shy for some reason around them. Anytime I talked to one, my throat locked up and my face started to burn and my palms started to sweat. The prettier they were, the harder it was to talk to them. And I could tell right from the get-go that talking to my roommate was going to be a hard thing to do.

She was a human girl with beautiful green eyes and slightly wavy brown hair. She only looked about a year or two younger than me, but that was in her face. The rest of her body suggested otherwise. She dropped her suitcase on the floor and walked towards me. She put out her hand.

"I'm Tara," she said.

"Knuckles," I said back, shaking her hand. I smiled at her, my cheeks feeling hot. She turned around again and picked up her suitcase.

"Here, let me help you with that," I offered. She smiled again.

"Thanks." I took the luggage from her hands and started to bring it to the room on the opposite side of mine. I flicked on the light for her. I stepped in first.

"Where do you want me to put it?" I asked.

"Um… On the bed is fine."

I laid it right where she said, my hands shaking slightly. She pulled back the curtain on the other side of the bed to reveal the breathtaking view of the beach outside the complex. She drew in a breath.

"It's perfect!" she said.

I walked over and stood beside her. She was right. It was perfect. She stole a glance towards me. She giggled.

"Why are you blushing? There's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"Wh-What?" I stuttered. I tried to hide it the moment she noticed it. But since she had already seen it, there was really no point. She giggled again and gave me that smile. I decided to smile back again. I had a feeling that a temporary life in the same apartment as her wouldn't be so bad.

Chapter One:

We both sat down on the couch in the living room after she briefly unpacked. We decided to get to know each other a little better. I let her do most of the talking at first. She told me about how she had been pretty much homeless before she had come to the apartment. Her parents had both died when an airplane engine malfunctioned midflight.

"I'm sorry," I said awkwardly.

"It's ok," she said smiling weakly.

I decided to try and talk a little now. I didn't want to just know everything about her and have her know nothing about me. I cleared my throat.

"I know how you feel… I mean, I haven't lost my mom, but… I lost my dad not too long ago."

"Aw, I'm sorry. What happened to him?"

"He sacrificed himself to save me. It's a long and complicated story."

"I'm really sorry…"

"It's ok." There were a few moments of silence. I guess we were unintentionally remembering and respecting the family we had each lost. After a short while, Tara picked up the conversation again.

"So, you said that you still had your mom… Where is she?"

"Well, her and the rest of my people are hidden for their protection. Her, my step-brother and step-dad are all living in the ruins of a once great city."

"Oh… Your parents got divorced?"

"Yeah. My mom didn't really have a say in my life when I was younger. She couldn't really handle being the wife of a Guardian."

"Guardian…? Oh, that's where I've heard you before! I thought I recognized your name, but I couldn't put my finger on it… So you're the famous Guardian of Angel Island?"

I felt a blush cross my cheeks again. "Yeah, that's me."

"That's cool. You said you also had a step-brother. What's his name?"

"Kneecapceon. But we all call him Kneecaps for short."

"Aw, that's so cute! How old is he?"

"About one year old."

She nodded slightly in response. There was a bit of an awkward silence. I decided to try and start the next part of the conversation.

"So, you said that you were homeless after your parents died… How did you end up getting in a 5-star apartment complex?"

She looked up at the ceiling in thought. "Well, my house that I lived in was given to the rest of my family since I'm not 18. My uncle, who's my mother's older brother, is my godfather, but he outright refused to take me in, which I was actually really glad about."

"Why's that?"

She scrunched her nose in disgust. "He's really creepy and he smokes a lot. My parents literally only let me have contact with him at Christmas time."

"Creepy how?"

"He once told me that my boots were sexy."

I got the picture.

"Anyways, my aunt, who's my godmother and my dad's sister, lives pretty far from here, so she didn't find out for a little while. My grandparents said that they needed to 'save every penny this day in age'. My other grandparents can't even take care of themselves, so how are they supposed to take care of me? Luckily for me, my parents thought about all of that, so since I'm an only child, they gave me all of the money they had left. And I gotta tell ya, my parents were pretty darn rich. So I packed my things, found an apartment complex that my parents had kind of donated to for a cheaper price, and now I'm here. So what's your story?"

I told her about how I wanted to get out more and hang out with my friends (well, friend, I guess) more often. There were other reasons why I had decided to hang out and meet new people, but I decided not to tell her that. Not yet.

We talked and talked pretty much until the sun went down. After an hour or two, it got easier and easier to talk to her, pretty much until it was like talking to another guy. I no longer blushed at every little thing she said or whenever she smiled. Instead of being like someone to be embarrassed around, she seemed like a normal person that I could relate to. Since neither of us had really gotten anything to eat, we decided to call it a night. She changed into her pajamas and retired to her room with a good night. I went to bed soon after, smiling to myself. So far, this temporary life was going pretty darn good.

Chapter Two:

I turned around and opened my eyes only halfway. I looked at the clock. 9:38 a.m. I sat up and yawned, stretching my arms out. I decided to slip my gloves and shoes on. I didn't really feel quite at home yet, and I didn't really know if Tara was going to get dressed up in the morning either.

When I walked out into the kitchen, which was right near the living room, Rachel was sitting at the bar area. She was still in her PJs, which consisted of a black cami and red and blue flannel pants. She saw me come in and smiled at me.

"Good morning," she said kindly.

"Morning." I sat down on the stool next to her. I was thinking about getting something to eat, but realized with disappointment that neither of us had thought ahead and gotten groceries before we had moved in. I looked over at her.

"Should we go and get something to eat?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm good right now."

Then, not a moment after she said it, both of our stomachs growled. Our faces flushed. We looked at each other. Tara laughed nervously.

"Well, maybe I could use a little something to bite…"

"Same. I think there's a bakery near here. Why don't we get something to eat? My treat, ok?"

She gave me that already familiar smile. "Ok, sounds good."

She didn't even bother to really get dressed. She just slipped on a black pair of moccasins. We went to the coffee shop just down the street. I bought us both a cinnamon roll and a strawberry banana smoothie. We talked some more until we were both done. We laughed at a few jokes we told each other on the way back. We stopped by the grocery store to get some food that would last us for a while.

Even though it was just day two of rooming with Tara, I was starting to notice some of her mannerisms. For instance, she would raise her voice a pitch when she talked to strangers, and then she'd turn to me and talk in her normal voice. She was kind of shy around people she didn't know too. She usually only gave one word responses to strangers as well. "Yeah," "No," "Good," and "I don't know," were pretty typical things to hear. I was also starting to notice that she was claustrophobic. Whenever we were caught in a deep crowd, she would kind of condense herself and walk faster. I couldn't say that I blamed her. I was kind of the same way. And even though Tara had boat loads of money, she never really acted like it. She wore simple clothes, bought simple things, and never really mentioned her inherited fortune. She acted like a normal tomboy teenage girl.

The tomboy part kind of surprised me though. Even though her looks could put any man on his knees, she didn't wear makeup, she hated the color pink, and she couldn't stand wearing high heels.

We got back to the apartment and immediately began putting all of the food away. I quickly learned how organized Tara was. She put bread in its own place, butter in one place, milk in one place, yogurt on the second shelf on the fridge, ketchup, mustard, etc. on the top shelf, fruits and vegetables in the compartments on the bottom, and so on and so on. If I accidentally put something somewhere else, she gave me a quick nonchalant glare and then put it where she wanted it. I couldn't help but laugh.

Over the next few days, we got more and more used to each other's company. She wore her PJs in the morning and I didn't wear my gloves and shoes. We went out to get smoothies or hot chocolate and just plain old hung out most of the time. We liked each other's company. It took our minds off of the terrible things that had happened to us. I was happy now. I had actually managed to make a new friend pretty easily, and living with a girl wasn't so bad anymore. My shyness was close to nothing, and I was starting to act just like myself.

One night, I had turned on the 52 inch flat screen TV we had to watch a football game. Tara heard the noise and sat down beside me on the couch.

"Who's playing?" she asked eagerly.

I stared at her in bewilderment. "Um… I'm not sure yet. Wait, you like football?"

She grinned and nodded at me. "Did you expect anything less?"

I laughed and shook my head. The Soultouch was telling me… It was telling me she was the one… But I suppressed the natural romantic instinct and just enjoyed having a new best friend.


	2. Chapters 3, 4 and 5

Chapter Three:

Over the next few weeks, not much really happened. We just laughed together and hung out most of the time. My mind couldn't help but wander back to Angel Island sometimes, but I had left it alone a lot of times, and it was usually fine. I decided to let go of it and just enjoy my impermanent life for the time being.

One day, while Tara and I had gone out to get lunch, we were both walking done the sidewalk talking to each other when a blue whir came out of nowhere. I instantly recognized the blue hedgehog, especially when he nearly collided into me. He barely skidded to a stop in time.

He let out a deep breath. "Whoops. Sorry, Red. Didn't mean to- Wait, Knuckles? Is that really you? What are you doing here?"

He stared at me in shock. I grinned. "What's wrong? Am I somehow different when you don't see me on Angel Island?"

He laughed. "No, I just didn't expect you to leave it for a while. But it's good to see you." We did a quick knuckle bump.

"So, what brings you to town, Knux?"

I shrugged. "I guess I just got tired of sitting around doing nothing. Besides, I hadn't seen ya for a while."

"I see." He looked over at Tara. He smiled. "So, mind telling me who your pretty friend here is?"

"What? Oh, right. Sonic, this is Tara. Tara, Sonic."

She smiled at him. "Hi," she shyly greeted.

"Hey." He stared at her for a few moments. "Hey, Knux, can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Sure." He pulled me to the side and made sure that we were out of ear shot from Tara. I was somewhat dazed out when he suddenly punched me in the arm.

"Dude, you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend!" he said excitedly.

I looked at him curiously. "Girlfriend? Oh! You mean Tara?"

He nodded. "Yeah! How long has that been going on?"

I felt myself blush. "Oh…Uh… Well, you see… Tara and I aren't dating. We're just roommates."

He busted out laughing. "Ha ha! Yeah, that's a good one Knux! 'You're just roommates.'"

I glared at him. "It's true!"

He snickered a little more before speaking. "Ok, fine, so you two aren't dating. It doesn't matter. You totally have the hots for her."

My face burned brighter. "Wh-What are you talking about?"

He grinned and nudged me with his elbow. "Come on, Red, you can't it hide from me, let alone anyone else who sees you two together. You have a total crush on her and you know it!"

"B-But I… I mean…It's not like that! I-I…" I knew it was no use. He was right. Anyone could probably tell that I liked Tara. Maybe even Tara herself. I sighed. "Ok, fine. You caught me. So what?"

"Sooo, why don't you ask her out?" he asked.

"What? Ask her out?"

"Yeah, like, you know, going out to dinner or seeing a movie or something?"

"Well, I mean… I don't know if she'd…" My hands were clammy. I rubbed the back of my head nervously. I had never thought about going out with Tara before… We hung out a lot and saw movies and ate dinner together and stuff, but it was just as friends. Sure we shoved each other around and teased each other and occasionally held hands, but we never thought of ourselves as "in a relationship".

"Come on, Knuckles, what's so hard about asking a girl out?" he teased.

I glared at him again. I hated it when he found some reason to make fun of me. "Shut up."

He just smiled at me. "Look, just go over to her, say, 'Hey Tara, wanna go out and see a movie or something?', and if she says yes, then go see a movie, tell her how you feel, and maybe get some action."

My face flushed again, my eyes widening. "G-Get some action?"

"Yeah, you know, make out with her a little…"

"D-Dude!"

"What? That's how relationships work! Or is it that you're just too afraid of a little smooching?"

"N-No! That's not it! It's just… I mean… I've never really…"

He sighed heavily, looking up at the sky in annoyance. "Look, are you gonna ask her out, or am I going to have to do it for you?"

"No way!"

"All right then, let's go!" He started pulling my arm back towards Tara. I dug my heels into the ground.

"Hey, wait! Sonic, stop!"

He grabbed my shoulders and put me right in front of her. She looked at us curiously.

"Hey Tara, Knux here wants to ask you something." I didn't have to look at him to know that he had a snarky smile on his face. I gulped, a few beads of sweat running down my forehead.

"Um… Well I… I wanted to know if maybe… You wanted to go see a movie or something?"

At first, she just examined my face, as if she was trying to figure out why I was so nervous. She looked over my shoulder at Sonic, who was still holding my shoulders. Then, her eyes widened in understanding.

"O-Oh!" she stuttered, "Yeah, I'd love to."

I didn't respond. I just stood there dumbfounded with my mouth gaped open slightly. Thankfully, Sonic replied for me.

"Great!" he said. He shoved me towards her. I stumbled forward right into her. I barely caught myself in time before our lips made impact. We stared into each other's eyes, our lips barely a centimeter apart. My heart raced. I just wanted to break the distance between them then and there. But I knew there were people around. In the bright sunlight, a make-out session would've been easily spotted. I took a step back, my heart racing. Her face was a rosy shade of red. We couldn't break each other's stare. After a few more awkward moments, I cleared my throat.

"So, uh, should we go now?"

"Y-Yeah, that sounds good," she replied.

"Ok." I started to walk off with her, but before I walked too far away, I stopped and turned around to look at Sonic. He smiled at me. I mouthed the words "Thank you" and then caught up to Tara. When she saw that I was beside her again, she smiled at me. I smiled back. I felt her soft hand intertwine in mine. I welcomed the gesture. Both of us stayed quiet, our bodies warm and pulses racing.

Chapter Four:

We were sitting in the movie theater, the chair arm raised up. I wasn't really paying attention to the movie at all. I wasn't even sure what movie it was. I had just gotten the tickets and sat down wherever she wanted. She had picked the upper right corner seats. I think I knew why. I couldn't stop stealing glances at her. Pretty soon, I was taking full stares, without turning towards her.

I could tell that her mind was on something else too. Even in the dark, I could see that her face was red. She was staring at her hands as they twiddled around nervously. I could tell what she was thinking. I was thinking the same thing. I couldn't help but think about what Sonic had said about getting some action. But in a way, I didn't want to. I had never kissed a girl before. What if I sucked at it? What if she stopped right in the middle of it because she didn't like it? What if she thought we were moving it too fast? My heart was telling me to go get it, but my mind was telling me to just go with a loving first kiss and be done. But my body had a mind of its own. It was drawn towards her, telling me to just do it.

I suddenly noticed that our thighs were touching lightly. Her or I must've slipped closer to each other in our heated attraction. I decided to seize the opportunity the moment she looked over at me. Without a second thought, I leaned towards her, my eyes closing. Her eyes closed just before mine as she leaned in as well. I knew the darkness would hide it. There was no need to feel self-conscious. I had no idea how much longer the movie would last, but I got the feeling we had all the time in the world to be together.

I can't even begin to tell you how long we stayed there. However long it was, it felt like forever in my mind. We had a huge mad make-out session. Our lips collided together in a frenzy. Her arms wrapped around my shoulders, mine wrapping around her waist. I guess all of my doubts were for nothing, because she occasionally let out a deep sigh of lust. I don't think anyone looked at us. If they did, I couldn't tell. And frankly, I didn't care.

Now we were walking the down the sidewalk again, the sun setting. Her arms were wrapped around one of mine, the side her chest pressed up against my elbow. I could hear her heart beating frantically like mine. If I was right, which I hoped I was, she wanted the same thing I did; to go back to the apartment and finish what we started. I prayed she didn't notice my change of physique since we had started expressing our affections for each other. Her breasts against my arm really didn't help. I was pretty sure that we both could've just parked in on a bench and finished up, but I wanted to be alone with her. I didn't want anyone to ruin it.

After the long walk, we finally reached the complex. We rushed up the stairs, our hearts no longer able to take it. I unlocked the door faster than ever before. Tara instantly tugged me onto the couch. The moment we both hit the cushions, we continued right where we had left off.

I guess what people say about teenage hormones is right. They just seem to explode in almost an instant once they've found the one that makes them happy.

After nearly an hour, we both finally felt like we'd had enough to satisfy us for the time being. We separated our mouths, our lungs heaving.

"Tara," I was barely able to say, "I love you."

She looked at me and smiled. "I-I love you too Knuckles."

I decided to give her one last good kiss. She moaned slightly. I sat down beside her. She put her head in my chest and closed her eyes. I looked down and saw her smiling.

"You're an amazing kisser," she sighed. I smiled.

"Thanks. Your lips taste like paradise."

She giggled. "Thanks."

I wrapped my arms around her.

"This has been an amazing birthday," I breathed. Tara looked up at me.

"Oh! Shoot! I forgot to get you a gift!"

She got up with a start. I groaned. "Tara, I already told you, you don't need to get me anything!"

"Yes I do! You're my best friend, roommate, and now my boyfriend too!"

"Tara!"

"Knuckles, I know you don't want to cause me any trouble, but seriously, I want to get you something!" She snatched her keys off of the hook by the door and slipped her moccasins on.

"Ok, I get it, but I just don't want you to feel obligated to…"

"This isn't an obligation. This is just something I want to do." She gave me a short kiss and then smiled. "I'll text you when I start heading back, ok?"

"Ok."

She closed the door behind her, leaving me alone. I groaned in frustration and slid down lower on the couch. I hadn't celebrated my birthday in forever. Half the time I even forgot that it was my birthday. I really didn't want Tara to make a big deal about it… I was 16, the same age I have been for a long time. It wasn't anything special to me.

I jumped slightly when I heard the doorbell ring. I got up and opened the door. I wasn't that surprised when I saw Sonic standing there. He stared at me hopefully. I looked at him curiously.

"Um… Can I help you?"

Sonic examined me and then smiled. "Well, I was gonna ask how your date went," he nodded slightly towards my sensitive area, "but according to that it went pretty well."

"What are you…?" I looked down at myself and saw what he meant. My face flushed as I glared at him. "Hey, that's none of your business!"

He laughed. "I'm just saying it like it is. But seriously though, did it go well?"

I nodded and couldn't help but grin. "Oh yeah. It went better than I ever could've imagined."

"That's good."

"Seriously Blue, I can't thank you enough."

He raised one eyebrow at me. "For what?"

"For giving me the courage to ask Tara out, of course."

"Oh, right. Well, you're welcome."

I rolled my eyes as I saw his ego build.

I let him come inside and sit down. He really wanted to know the details of the date. Obviously I didn't tell him everything, but I did tell him the highlights.

He snickered at me. "So, you two gonna sleep together then?"

I scoffed at him. "Are you serious? Of course not! That would be taking it WAY too fast."

He shrugged. "You never know. From what you just told me, you two get chemistry the second you're in the same room."

I scratched my head thoughtfully. "Well, yeah, I guess you're right… But seriously, I doubt it."

"Just like you doubted you would make-out with her today, right?"

"Shut up."

He stifled a laugh. We talked about a lot of different stuff after that, like where he was staying, what he'd been up to, and how long he was staying in the area. We just kind of sat around talking and laughing a few times until Tara came back. When she unlocked the door and came inside, Sonic stood up.

"Well, it's getting pretty late. I should get going." He stared at me and smirked. "I don't wanna interrupt anything… important." He stifled another laugh as he started to head out the door. "Oh, and by the way, happy birthday!"

"Yeah, yeah, thanks, just get out of here!"

As he walked down the hall, I heard him turn his iPod on and start playing _Scream _by Usher. I ran out the door.

"SONIC!"

I heard him burst out laughing again. Tara stole a curious look at me.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing," I replied. I closed the door behind me. Tara placed a vanilla birthday cake at the bar as well as a neatly wrapped gift. She patted the seat in front of the cake. I sat down on and stared at the cake, Tara sitting down next to me. I looked at her sideways.

"You're not going to sing, are you?"

She laughed. "Of course not. I'm a terrible singer."

I let out a sigh of relief. She still lit up candles on the cake though.

"Make a wish," she said. I thought for a second before blowing out all of the candles. The smoke lingered in the air for a moment and slowly disappeared. She wrapped her arms around me.

"What did you wish for?" she asked.

I smiled at her. "If I told you, it wouldn't come true."

She giggled. "All right, fair enough. Now, open your gift!"

She let go of me and watched as I slowly opened the small gift. When I opened the lid to the small box, inside, I found a small chain with an emerald tied to the end of it.

"I wasn't really sure what to get you, but I know that you said you missed Angel Island, so I got you something so that you maybe won't miss it so much," Tara explained. I stared at my kaleidoscope reflection in the dazzling emerald. I looked over and smiled at her.

"It's perfect," I said. I carefully put it down and embraced her. "Thank you," I whispered. She wrapped her arms around me in return. After a few seconds, we released each other. I could see a look in Tara's eyes. I didn't know what it was, but it was a look I had never seen before. Doubt, maybe?

"What's wrong, Tara?" I asked. She looked me in the eyes.

"Knux… Do you think… Do you think we shouldn't be dating?"

"What makes you say that?"

"Well… I mean… You and I _live _together, and… I don't know… It just seems… Awkward."

I nodded. "I know what you mean. I thought about that for a little while, but you know what?" I put a hand on her cheek, "I love you, and that's all that matters. I know that living together and dating is kind of weird, especially since we only expressed our feelings for each other today."

She looked into my eyes. I could see that affectionate fire coming back into them. "Knuckles…" Her eyes began to droop as she wrapped her arms around my hips.

Chapter Five:

Ok, at this point, I would have to say that even Sonic would say that my relationship with Tara was going too fast. Even though he had been joking around about the whole making love with her thing, he had been right. We ended up sleeping together.

Before you start panicking, here's what happened: Tara started kissing me again, although it wasn't as rushed and wild as the other two times. Yes, I could tell, she wanted something more, but it wasn't as frantic. I think she knew that when it came to doing it with someone, you couldn't just rush into it unless it was a one-night stand. So this make-out session was more slow and calm, but it was still amazing.

Anyways, before I knew it, gloves, shoes, and socks were off. Tara's shirt, moccasins, and jeans came off. Before I even knew what we were doing, we were on Tara's bed, me on top. Her arms were wrapped around my shoulders, our lips lightly pressing together.

I had always had guiltily pleasurable dreams and day-dreams about accidentally catching Tara undressing, or being in the shower with her. I'm a guy, what can I say. But in real life, her body was so much more perfect. She was wearing a gray push-up bra with a red ribbon in the middle. Neither of us had even bothered to turn on the lights. There was no point. We didn't have to see anything but each other. After a few minutes, Tara moaned with pleasure and broke apart the kissing.

"Wait," she said, her breathing heavy, "Knuckles, are you sure we should do this?"

I stayed raised above her as she propped herself up on her elbows. "I don't know Tara, do you want to do this?"

"I don't know… I mean, we just started dating today… I think we're moving too fast…"

I got off of her and sat beside her to give her some space. "All right then, if that's what you think, then we'll stop."

"Wait!" She sat up abruptly, "But I want to, SO bad!"

"Well, we can't just do one or the other."

"I know! I mean…" She groaned and fixed her bra strap so that it wasn't twisted. She looked at me up and down do for a few moments. She looked at one spot in particular.

"Aw, screw going to fast! I wanna do this!"

I smiled. "All right then. If you're sure..."

After that, well, I think you know what happened…

The next morning, I opened my eyes, the night before ringing in my mind. I looked over and saw Tara sleeping peacefully, a bed sheet being the only thing covering her goddess like body. I smiled and inched towards her. I lied down behind her and wrapped my arms around her stomach. A few moments later, she cutely sighed as she woke up. She turned over and saw me laying there. She smiled, her eyes half-open.

"Good morning," she greeted tiredly.

"Good morning," I said back. We greeted each other more with a few kisses.

We both changed after gathering our scattered clothes. Tara volunteered to make hot chocolate for both of us. I remade her bed after in return. I could hear her humming to herself in the kitchen. I smiled. The only time she ever hummed was when she was in a really good mood. I had a feeling that yesterday, especially last night's, events triggered that. I walked out and saw her twirling her hair as she smiled, her beautiful voice humming a beautiful tune. She looked back at me, her smile wider. Then she turned around again, watching the hot liquid pour into the mug from the Keurig. I sat at the bar, admiring her beautiful face. Then, she did something that caught me off guard. Her humming turned into words that rang out as a perfect melody.

_Bridget with her eyes so bright looks towards Heaven at midnight._

_ On the longest night of year, that's the one she holds most dear._

_ Starry friends, she's often heard to say, how I wish that I could make you stay._

_ Though she knows they can't remain, time will bring them 'round again. _

I looked at her in shock. "Tara…"

She looked at me, her cheeks red. "What?" she asked innocently.

I smiled. "Th-That was beautiful…"

She turned her face away from me. "O-Oh… Thank you…"

I laughed. "So much for not being a good singer."

"Shut up," she scolded cutely.

Tara and I went on a few dates in the next week, but they were more of dinner dates than movie dates. But we enjoyed them nonetheless. After a week though, Tara seemed to change her opinion about us going out. She voiced her concerns to me one day.

"Knux, I don't think we should be going out…"

"What? Why?"

She looked at the floor sadly as she sat on the couch. "I just don't comfortable going out with the guy I'm rooming with. I mean, we're really good friends and stuff, and I don't want to ruin that. Besides, we see each other every day. When we wake up, when we go to sleep… I mean, it's just… Uncomfortable."

"Tara…"

She gave me a weak smile. "If we're going to live together then I'd prefer it if we were just friends. Is that ok?"

I hung my head sadly. "Y-Yeah… That's fine."

She hugged me and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you."

My heart felt heavy. I loved Tara. There was no way of suppressing that. But I wanted to at least stay friends with her. With the circumstances I was under, I would make rather have two best friends than just one. But I wished that things could be different. Yet since I was living in such a rare condition, I wanted to at least have her with me in one way.


	3. Chapter 6, 7 and 8

Chapter Six:

The days after that were kind of awkward, in my opinion. Well, a lot more awkward than when we were dating. We still hung out from time to time, but it was different in a way. We acted like we did when we were just friends, but I still felt the charisma for her. Every time we got close, I just wanted to kiss her and tell her how much I loved her. But she didn't want that. And I wanted to make her happy. So I didn't bring up that we had ever dated ever again.

But just after a week since we had broken up, I started to notice something weird. Tara started leaving the apartment more often than usual.

There would be a lot of times where she would go: "Hey, Knuckles, I'm heading out for a few hours. I'll be back later."

And I always replied: "Ok, see ya."

And she was out the door for awhile.

I'm not saying that I have to know where she goes all the time, or that she can never leave without me. She's her own being. She can do whatever she wants. But it was just odd. Before we even started dating, the only time she usually left was with me. But now, almost every day, she left for most of the day with no explanation. I started to wonder if she was trying to get away from me…

But I decided not to push the issue. I didn't want to be rude or invade her privacy. I just pretended like it was normal. But deep inside, I was hurting…

One day, while I was sitting on the couch nonchalantly watching TV, Tara's cell phone went off on the coffee table in front of me. I systematically picked it up and checked it. I squinted at the caller ID.

_Sonic? Why would Sonic be calling Tara? _I hesitated before finally yelling, "Tara! Someone's calling you!"

"I've got it!" She sprinted out of her room in only a robe. I blushed slightly, but instantly tried to hide it. She picked up her phone on the last ring.

"Hello? Hey! ... Ok… Uh huh… Ok, I'll be right there! … Bye!" She hung up and hurried back to her room.

"Who was that?" I asked, pretending not to know.

She stopped at the door. "Oh… A friend of mine." The door closed quickly behind her.

Ever since then, I played dumb. I pretended like I had no idea that Tara was contacting Sonic. But I knew it perfectly well. But I still didn't know why… That was the part that had me baffled. Sonic had only seen Tara twice. Well, at least that I knew of. Why were they all of a sudden being friends? And why was Tara trying to act like she didn't even know Sonic? These thoughts were always taunting me, like an endless song. It bothered me day in and day out, almost for no reason. It wasn't my business… But curiosity seemed to shroud my mind. I had to know. But I didn't want to just ask Tara up front. That would definitely be awkward. So I tried not think on it too much and just enjoy my time. But the more Tara left, the more my heart sank. Maybe living with Tara wasn't such a good idea anymore…

Chapter Seven:

One day, after Tara got back from going where ever, we both sat down at the bar and quietly ate our dinner. We barely glanced at each other the entire time. I didn't really eat more than a bite or two. I twirled my fork uneasily around my plate. About halfway through, I put my fork down. Tara looked up at me.

When I did nothing but stare at the food in front of me, she asked, "Knuckles, what's wrong?"

"Tara… Are you… Uncomfortable staying with me, after we… You know…"

She stared at me for a second. "Knuckles… I'm not… _Uncomfortable _per say… I'm just… Troubled."

"Would you prefer it if I found another room?"

She looked at me in shock. "No! Knuckles, you don't have to move out!"

"But I feel like… I feel like I've screwed everything up for us. We can't even hang out like we did before we were dating. I guess… I guess I just get the feeling that you're… Trying to get away from me."

"Oh… Oh my gosh, Knuckles… I didn't mean to make you think that! I still like you, as a friend, you know. It's just… I need some time to think things over, that's all."

She leaned forward and hugged me. "I don't hate you, if that's what you think. I just need to sort through my thoughts for a little while. Please understand."

I closed my eyes and put my arms around her. "It's ok, Tara. I understand. Trust me. I understand."

"Thank you."

I almost said, "I love you," but I knew that that would definitely make things awkward. So I just settled with, "I'm right here if you need me."

"Thanks."

We hugged for a few more minutes. Afterwards, she smiled at me and walked back to her room, leaving me sitting there with her lingering warmth.

A couple days later, I was walking down the street, just to get outside a little more, enjoying the sunshine. The beach wasn't far off to my right. I drew in a deep breath and smiled to myself. For a few minutes, I completely forgot about Tara.

But it all came rushing back to me when I saw something that almost completely caught me off guard. Sitting down outside of a café, I saw Tara and Sonic sitting together, talking and laughing with each other. It looked like their hands were under the table. I stopped for a moment, just to make sure I was seeing things right. When I realized that I was, I started to turn around to walk away, but before I got the chance, Tara called, "Hey, Knuckles!"

I turned around again and looked at her. They both seemed surprised to see me just as much as I was to see them.

"O-Oh, hey," I said.

The two of them stole a nervous glance towards each other.

"S-So, what are you guys doing here?" I asked awkwardly.

"Oh, well… Sonic and I were just trying to get to know each other better," Tara replied. She didn't attempt to explain why.

"Oh… I see."

A few gawky moments passed. Sonic cleared his throat.

"Um… I guess I should get going then…"

"No, it's ok. I was just heading back," I said. I turned to Tara. "So, I'll see ya later then?"

She nodded slightly. "Yeah. See ya."

I turned on my heel and walked as fast as I could, my head spinning.

Chapter Eight:

I went straight back to the apartment, although I was unable to sit down.

"They can't be… They aren't… There's no way he would…" I muttered.

I couldn't stop thinking about the possibility that my worst fears were true. Was this Tara trying to tell me that she had moved on, or that she needed some space? But she had said that it didn't bother her that we still lived together. But maybe she had just said that just to feel better. But she seemed so sincere…

I rubbed my head in frustration. I was making a big deal out of nothing. So what if they hung out? That didn't mean that they were going out. And so what if they were! It wasn't my business.

"Just let it go, Knuckles…" I muttered to myself, "Just let it go…"

But that was next to impossible. The whole week, strange things kept happening. Sometimes when I went back to the apartment and heard Tara talking to someone in the living room. She would always look up at me in shock, and quietly say something and then briskly hang up. She always acted like she hadn't been talking to anyone, and just sat there smiling at me. Whenever I asked who it was, she quickly said, "Oh, no one."

But that wasn't all. One day, I came back, and at first, her eyes looked hopeful. A second later, that hope turned to fear.

"O-Oh… Knuckles…" she said anxiously, "What are you doing here? I thought you were going to be out for a little while."

"No. I just went out to get some air since I didn't feel well," I said cautiously.

Sometimes my head got dizzy when I stayed inside for too long. Walking made me a little bit weaker, but the fresh air felt nice.

Anyways, I stared at her curiously. At first she didn't say anything. But a little later, "So, you feeling better?"

"Yeah, a little."

"That's good. So…You heading out again?"

"No."

After a few more seconds, she picked up her phone, rapidly called someone, and strolled to her room, shutting the door behind her, her voice hushed.

I tried not to take notice. But it was definitely bizarre. I couldn't help but feel like I was being left in the dark about something. Sometimes when I asked her to hang out, she said that she was busy, but that she would hang out with me some other time. She never seemed eager to though.

More and more frequently, she would leave for most of the day without even saying goodbye. Sometimes I went to sleep without seeing her, but saw her again in the morning. We were growing more and more apart, it seemed, with no reason that I was aware of.

Most days, I'd say, "Good morning," and she would only glance at me for a split second and then reply, "Oh, good morning."

The same thing seemed to be happening with Sonic. I asked if he wanted to hang out, but he always said, "Sorry, I'm busy today." And that was that.

I'd see him on the street, but he never made an attempt to say hi. I quickly began to realize how alone I really was…

Many nights later, I was sitting on the couch alone, just staring at the ceiling. I sighed, not knowing what to do. But a minute later, I heard the door unlocking and saw Tara and Sonic coming in, holding hands and laughing. They both saw me, and their eyes widened.

"O-Oh, hi Knuckles," she said, her face red. Sonic sighed.

"Well, he was going to figure it out eventually…"

"Figure out what? What's going on?"

Tara looked down in embarrassment. "Knuckles… Sonic… Sonic and I are dating."


	4. Chapter 9, 10 and 11

Chapter Nine:

My head felt numb. No, correction, my whole body felt numb. I just stared at her. I didn't feel shocked or angry or anything. I just felt… numb.

I had known that Sonic and Tara were going out. I had known that almost from the beginning. But for some reason, it caught me completely off-guard. Tara looked at me worriedly. Sonic just stared at me.

"K-Knuckles…?" Tara asked cautiously.

I closed my eyes for a second. Here it comes…

"Excuse me," I said, rapidly getting up. I practically ran to my room, slammed the door shut, ran to the bathroom, slammed that door, locked it, and started crying into my hands. I felt all of the despair just rush out of me. Normally, I didn't cry, but right now, it seemed like the only response I could give. I heard the bedroom door open. I didn't know if it was Tara, Sonic, or both, but I didn't care. I didn't want to talk to either of them. I felt so betrayed… Why would they do this to me? Sonic knew… Sonic _knew _that I loved Tara! He probably knew that I slept with her too… And he did something like _this _to me!? Going out with the girl I had slept with was probably one of the lowest, if not the lowest thing he'd ever done to me. I hated him… I hated him so much…

"Knuckles?" Tara said worriedly, knocking on the door. I didn't respond. I just wiped my tears away in frustration. I rested my elbows on the sink, my face in my hands. I took a few deep breaths, trying to gain my composure. I decided not to take it out on Tara.

"Knuckles, please, can we just talk about this?" she begged.

I sighed and opened the door. She looked up at me, regret in her eyes.

"What?" I said.

"Knuckles… I'm really sorry! It's just… I needed someone to talk to about the whole situation, and Sonic was there. He kind of helped me and told me how to deal with it."

I huffed, "So he told you to ignore me in order to deal with it?"

"N-No! No! He didn't… I mean… He didn't say to _ignore _you, but…"

"Then how come both of you decided to blow me off all of a sudden?"

"I just didn't… Know what to say, you know. And besides, it was hard to think about at first. Neither of us knew how to hang out with you without you finding out. We didn't mean for you to find out, Knuckles, it just… slipped."

I shook my head. "But why didn't you talk to _me _about it?"

She shrugged. "I don't know… I just felt… lost… I had no idea how you would react if I tried to talk about it. I thought you didn't want to even think about it anymore…"

"But I would've understood if you would've just _told _me instead of leaving me in the dark!"

"I'm sorry, Knuckles. Please, please believe me. I didn't mean for this to happen. It just… happened."

I looked over and saw Sonic standing in the bedroom doorway. I took a deep breath.

"Tara, could you please leave me and Sonic alone. I have to talk to him about something."

"O-Ok…" She walked away, glancing uncertainly at Sonic. He gave a slight nod as she closed the door behind her.

The second she was out of earshot, I punched Sonic as hard as I could in the face. He yelled out in pain, holding his right cheek.

"Ahh… Dude, what was that for?"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHAT WAS THAT FOR!?" I yelled at him.

He backed up slightly. "Look, I know you're mad, but can we just talk for a second before you totally beat my brains out?"

"Fine by me. As long as you explain why you're dating the girl that you _knew _I loved and slept with!"

He looked up at me, his left hand up in a sign of innocence. "Hey, it's not what it looks like! It's not like I threw myself at her once I knew you two had broken up! _She _came to _me!_"

"Oh, and that just excuses the fact that you started going out with her behind my back!"

"Look, Knux, let me explain this, please! She was flustered about what happened between you two, so she came to me for help. After we got to know each other a little better, she asked me out."

"And you said no the first time, right?"

He looked down nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Well… Not exactly…"

I punched him again.

"Ow! Dude, I told you, let me talk to you about this!"

"You've had your chance to talk! I don't want to hear anymore out of you! You've made it clear that you didn't even try to say no to Tara! You just went out with her as you pleased, despite what happened between her and I! You both blew me off and got all cuddly with each other!"

"Knux… Look, dude, I didn't mean to-…"

"Save it! I don't want to hear you anymore. Now get out of my sight before I change my mind about caving your skull in."

I turned my back on him. At first, he didn't move. But after a short while, I heard him walk out. Whether he left the whole apartment or not, I didn't know. I didn't care either.

I felt my lip tremble as a tear escaped my eyes again.

Chapter Ten:

Tara and I felt extremely awkward after that fiasco. Not shockingly, she had heard the whole thing. I didn't come out of my room at first. I waited at least an hour before that uncomfortable conversation. We sat on the couch together, considerably far apart, though. Neither of us spoke at first. After a long silence, I cleared my throat.

"Tara…"

"Yeah?" she replied, not looking at me.

"Do… Do you think… Do you think that night shouldn't have happened?" I didn't look at her either.

She finally looked at me in confusion.

"What night?"

"You know… The night we… made love." I blushed as I said it. I stared determinedly at my lap.

"Oh… That night…" She turned away again. She took a while before answering, "I think… I mean… it's not that I wish it didn't happen, but… The way things are now, I definitely think it was a mistake, in a way."

"O-Oh…" We sat there in silence for a little longer. After a few minutes, Tara took a deep breath.

"So, what should we do? I mean, should we be friends, or…?" She waited for my response.

I sighed. "Yeah. I think being friends would be good."

"So are you cool with me going out with Sonic?"

No. "Yeah, sure, I mean, it's none of my business what you two do."

"So are you still mad at Sonic?"

Yes. "No, we're cool. It'll be hard getting used to, but yeah, we should be fine."

"Good. I don't want to cause a rift between you two."

I shrugged. "Nah, you're fine. We've gotten through a lot of breaks between us. This time should be no different."

"If you're sure…"

"I'm sure."

Truth was, I had no idea what would happen to Sonic and I's friendship. It made my heart sink a little just thinking that Sonic and I were permanently on bad terms. That would mean that I only had one really good friend. Tara. And even _that_ relationship was on thin ice. I didn't know exactly what to do. But I decided not to focus on it. I would just sleep on it, and then handle it in the morning. That is, if Sonic was willing to talk to me again.

Chapter Eleven:

The next day, Sonic called me. I halfheartedly answered the phone. The gist of what Sonic said was: "Hey, I know I'm dating the girl you live with and still love, but we're cool right?"

I just decided to give no argument.

A few days later, Tara told me something that really took me for a spin.

A few hours after noon, I saw her packing some of her stuff into a bag. I looked at her curiously across the hallway from my room.

"Whatcha doin'?" I asked.

"Oh," she said, looking up at me, "I'm going to stay over at Sonic's tonight. That's ok, right?"

I shrugged. "Fine by me. By the way, you don't need my permission to go somewhere. You can go wherever you want."

"I know, but… I just feel like you should know, since… You know…"

"Tara, its fine! You and Sonic going out doesn't bother me anymore!"

She smiled weakly. "Thanks."

She left shortly after, leaving me alone for the rest of the day and night. I kicked off my shoes and socks, pulled my gloves off, and just relaxed for the rest of the night.

I wasn't a stranger to loneliness. As a matter of fact, being alone for awhile was exactly what I needed. I usually did better alone. The whole "love triangle" thing was just too much for me. Tch, if you could call it that. I'm pretty sure I already lost. Tara was spending that night with Sonic, which could only mean…

Yep. They were in bed together. I started to think about this more and more… Tara… Sonic… in bed…

I was lying on the couch, my arms folded behind my head. I closed my eyes, letting go of everything else and thinking about Tara. I couldn't help but take one hand and paw at myself. I couldn't help it.

But then I started thinking more and more. I started thinking about Sonic with her. I cringed, covering my face with my hands. He had Tara all to himself, and there wasn't a darn thing I could do about it.

I started to feel exhausted shortly after. My head felt light, and my stomach started to hurt. I gingerly got up and dialed the phone.

I slept soundly at the hospital, like I usually did. The sessions always made me sleepy. I loved going to the hospital. The people there were nice to me, and knew me pretty well now. I always had time to just forget everything for a little while whenever I was there. I could sleep more peacefully and fully. Everything always seemed to drift off the second the fluids started flow into my veins.


	5. Chapter 12, 13 and 14

Chapter Twelve:

I returned from the hospital the next morning, finding that, as I suspected, Tara wasn't there. I sighed, feeling somewhat weak from my hospital treatment.

I immediately kicked my shoes and gloves off and went straight to bed. I put the warm comforters over my weary body. Within minutes, I was fast asleep.

I had the strangest dream that morning… It all started in Tara's room…

We were making out on her bed, but we were both upright and completely clothed. After a few minutes, Tara stopped and looked at me, her arms around my shoulders. She smiled and laughed. I smiled back.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing. Just that," she giggled, "Sonic and I were doing pretty much the exact same thing a few hours ago."

"Really?" I replied, never breaking my smile.

"Yep," she said, grinning wider.

I busted out laughing. She did the same. We laughed for a minute before regaining our composure. She kissed me again before pushing me onto the bed on my back. At first, she just smiled at me, pinning me to the bed. I smiled back.

She gave me a long kiss, causing me to close my eyes. She got off of me and started to walk away, saying, "Have a good rest, ok?"

"Sure," I said, watching her as she walked away. My eyelids shut, my mind wandering off.

Then, I swore I woke up, but my eyes didn't open. I tried to open them with all my might, but they just wouldn't open. My body felt like it was nailed to the bed. I tried to move, but it hurt too badly. Suddenly, everything seemed to disappear. I felt like I was… floating. No, actually, I was flying. I still couldn't see anything, but I was definitely going up. My eyes still wouldn't open, and my body still wouldn't do what I wanted it to do.

Suddenly, my eyes opened, and I found myself in the middle of a grass field in the middle of nowhere. The sun wasn't out, but there was a serene light surrounding the area. I got up onto my feet, looking around curiously. On top of a hill not far away from me, I saw an echidna, his back facing me. I took a few cautious steps forward. I couldn't see who it was…

He turned his head around and looked at me, but I still couldn't tell who it was. Suddenly, I heard Tara crying for me. I spun around, trying to see where she was. But no one was there. When I turned back around, the man was walking away.

"Hey!" I yelled, running towards him. After a few seconds of running, I suddenly felt someone's hand grabbing mine. At first, I tried to yank my hand away, but when I turned around and saw who it was, I stopped cold.

I stared into the sad eyes of my mother, tears streaming down her face…

I woke up with a start, a few beads of sweat on my forehead.

"Knuckles?" I heard the door close, Tara's bag dropping on the bed in her room. I was sitting up, taking deep breaths as I heard her walk around.

That man… Tara's cries… Mom's face… It all seemed eerily connected, but for no apparent reason. I tried to think it all over.

It was one of those dreams that's so vivid, it seems like it actually happened… But I was trying to figure out why it had all happened… Why did I need to rest? Who was that man on top of that hill? Why was Tara crying for me? Why did my mom seem so sad?

I took one last deep breath before slowly getting up and walking to the bathroom, instantly splashing cold water on my face.

Maybe it didn't mean anything… I was making a big deal out of nothing…

"Knuckles, you here?" I heard Tara call.

"Yeah," I replied, trying to break out of my thoughts.

"You ok?"

"Yeah." I walked out of the bathroom and found Tara in my bedroom doorway. She gave me a concerned look.

"You don't look so good…"

I smiled weakly. "I'm fine. Just a bad dream."

"Are you sure?"

I huffed, rolling my eyes to the ceiling. "Tara, I'm _fine!_ Will you quit worrying about me so much?"

She laughed. "I'm sorry, it's just… We've lived together for so long… it just feels natural to feel concerned about you."

I stared at her for a moment, my heart skipping a beat. Her cheeks turned red as she looked down at the floor, avoiding my gaze.

She walked across the hall to her room and slowly began unpacking her stuff.

I coughed slightly, walking to her doorway. "So, uh, how's Sonic?"

"Oh… Uh… Good," she said. I only saw a glimpse of an embarrassed smile on her face. I felt a small twinge of envy and fury, but decided not to act on it.

A few awkward moments passed by. Tara continued unpacking as she asked, "So, how was your night?"

_Well, I sat here alone, touching myself as I thought about you, and then had to go to the hospital to get treatment for a stomach cramp. _"Fine," I said.

"That's good."

I didn't dare ask her about her night. I already had a picture of how it went. I also decided not to tell her about the details of my dream or that I went to the hospital overnight. That would only worry her for no reason.

After she unpacked, I asked her if she wanted to head out for breakfast somewhere.

"Oh, shoot, sorry Knuckles. I already ate breakfast with Sonic."

Chapter Thirteen:

After that day, things were pretty much back to normal. I hung out with Tara or Sonic from time to time, acting like everything was normal. Surprisingly, I felt perfectly fine and happy to hang out with them normally. As a matter of fact, I was relieved that things were back to the way they had been.

But that only lasted about a week. After that, I couldn't hang out with either of them by themselves.

Every time I asked Tara to hang out: "Oh, sure thing. But can Sonic come along with us?"

Every time I asked Sonic to hang out: "Yeah, sure. Hey, is it cool if Tara comes along too?"

I guess what people say about relationships is true. There's no longer an "I", "me" or "my". It's always, "us", "we" or "our". I vowed to myself that if I ever got another girlfriend that I would never do that.

It wasn't that I was mad that they wanted to kind of date in front of me. Frankly, it just annoyed me. I couldn't go anywhere with just one of them. They both had to come, otherwise they wouldn't agree to it. It was like they were conjoined twins or something.

And the pet names… Oh my Aurora, the pet names… Those drove me up a wall.

Here is what a normal conversation was like when Sonic and Tara were together, either on the phone or in person:

Tara: "Aw, you're so sweet Slick Bug."

Me: _Slick bug? Seriously!? _

Sonic: "No, you're the one that's sweet Golden Boo."

Me: _Where do people come up with this stuff!?_

Tara: "Ok, see you tomorrow Magic Wizard."

Me: *does a face palm* _You've gotta be kidding me…_

Sonic: "Goodnight Sizzle Darlin'."

At that point, I just about ran over to Sonic's place and punched him in the face.

And guess what? That's just a taste of it! They can carry out entire conversations like that!

And probably one of the worst things was that they weren't afraid to broadcast their conversations, no matter how sexual. I didn't know if it was just to annoy me or make me mad or whatever, but if it was, it worked. Tara always had the phone on speaker phone, but coincidentally, it was only when Sonic called.

The things they talked about made me gag. It was usually in the middle of the night too. I'd just be laying in bed, trying to sleep, when across the hall, I hear Sonic talk about how much he enjoyed his bed date with her. She laughed and told him how much she enjoyed it too. I angrily rolled onto my stomach, slamming my pillow over my head.

One night, when they were getting into details I'd rather not repeat, I walked across the hall to Tara's room, remaining completely calm. She was lying on the bed when she looked over at me curiously. She didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest that her conversation was not in the least bit private.

"Hey, there's someone calling you on the main phone," I said casually.

"Really?" She got up and walked out into the hallway. In the short time she was absent, I walked over to her bed, where she had left her cell phone, Sonic still on the other line. I clicked the off button. I went right back to bed without saying another word to Tara.

Chapter Fourteen:

After that, I just gave up on hanging out with them. There was really no point. They always kissed or blatantly held hands and snuggled when they went somewhere with me. So I decided to save myself the torture and just avoid it as much as possible. They were both out with each other most of the time, leaving me by myself. I thought about trying to go out and meet somebody else new, but considering the fact that I wasn't very sociable, I thought, better not.

So I just let them be, not even caring about what they did or said to each other. But my heart still throbbed when I saw Tara. I loved her _so _much… But it was time to let go. She had found somebody else, and I had to come to terms with that, even if it was my best friend she had found.

One day, I was sitting at the bar in the apartment, staring at the emerald charm Tara had given me. I moved it around in my fingers as I remembered the night she had given it to me… My birthday… The night we made love…

I sighed, remembering how much enjoyment we both had being together. But all of that was over now, just taken away by the shore…

All of a sudden, the main phone rang. I jumped slightly in the chair. I looked curiously over at the caller ID: Tara.

I hesitated a moment before picking up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Knuckles!"

"Hey! What's going on?"

"Well, Sonic and I were going out to see a movie together, and we were wondering if you wanted to come along or not."

Great. Being a third wheel. Just what I needed.

I knew what they were up to. Well, at least, what Sonic was up to. Maybe Tara wasn't in on the whole thing, but I knew what Sonic had in mind. He wanted to show off the fact that he had Tara instead of me, AGAIN. Gosh, how I hated him…

"Uh, no thanks. I'm kind of busy right now." There was no way she would buy that.

"Oh, ok… Well, maybe some other time?" She sounded disappointed…

"Yeah, maybe…"

"Ok, see ya!"

"Bye."

I hung up, feeling somewhat curious about something. I twiddled the emerald charm in my hands as I thought about it…

I got a lot of calls asking me about going with Sonic and Tara on their dates. As you probably guessed, I said no every time.

I almost said yes one time just to shut them up, but I knew I would be miserable the whole time. So I once again declined.

After several attempts, Tara came back to the apartment with Sonic to try and convince me to come. (You see, Tara had decided to stay with Sonic a lot more a few weeks after their first night together.)

"Come on, Knuckles, it'll be fun!" Tara said.

I sighed. "Look, I don't want to ruin your guys' time together. You should enjoy it by yourselves."

"You should get outside some more, ya hermit!" Sonic said, "Have some fun for once!"

Yeah, I did have fun: When you and Tara weren't dating.

"Knuckles, please, just one time, then I swear, I'll never ask you again!" Tara pleaded.

I looked at her curiously. "You promise?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die."

I stared at her for a moment. Why was she so determined…?

"All right, fine. I'll go with you guys."

Tara's begging face filled with instant joy. "Yay!" she practically screamed, wrapping her arms around me in an excited hug, "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! You won't regret it, I promise!"

Another thing I had noticed about Tara: She wasn't a tomboy much anymore. Ever since she had started going out with Sonic, or maybe even the week she dated me, she acted a lot more girly. She wore a little bit of makeup, tighter shirts, tighter jeans, and even curled her hair on occasion. It was so strange to see her like that compared to the energetic football fan I had originally met.

So, reluctantly, I tagged along with them to Aurora-knows-where. I had already had the mindset of saying no, so I hadn't even listened to where we were going. At first, I thought, just relax and try to have a good time. But the second Sonic and Tara started holding hands, I knew it was going to be a rough night…


	6. Chapter 15, 16 and 17

Chapter Fifteen:

I stayed a little ways behind as Tara held Sonic's arm. She would occasionally rub her nose on his shoulder. He would give her a kiss on the forehead in return. I just stared at the ground after they did that a couple of times. I was almost certain at that point that they wanted to make me mad.

I didn't even bother to ask where we were going. I wasn't sure I wanted to know. I just counted the cement squares as we walked on.

After what felt like forever, we finally got somewhere. But I didn't like where it was.

We were on the hill of the city, just high enough to see the whole beach. The sunset beautifully reflected on the ocean water as far as the eye could see. At first, I stared at it in awe. But I quickly realized that there were a lot of other people around. They were scattered around the hill in different spots. Sonic and Tara sat down under a tree. I sat down a short distance away. I hugged my knees to my chest. I stole a curious glance over at Sonic and Tara. They were sitting up, Tara wrapped around Sonic's arm again. I quickly looked away.

I thought about asking them what we were going to do there, but I decided not to. She would probably tell me that she had already told me. So I just watched the sun set, trying to stay inside my own thoughts.

Once the night covered the sky, the moon replacing the sun, I finally understood what was going to happen. A stream of light flew up into the black sky, and then went out for a split second before exploding into several sparks of red. I didn't think about anything else, I just watched stream after stream after stream of light soar into the air until it burst into an array colors and patterns. I completely forgot about everything that was happening to me: Tara being with Sonic, me having a hospital treatment the next day, me not having very many friends…

But in the midst of the awe-inspiring sparks, I heard a slight moan of desire beside me. I looked over to my left curiously, but immediately regretted it.

Illuminated by the occasional colored lights, I saw Tara's arms wrapped around Sonic and Sonic's hands on Tara's face as they made out right in front of me. I couldn't help but gawk at them, my mouth gaped open. After a minute or so, I shook my head angrily. In a second, I was up on my feet, walking away as fast as I could.

_Screw those two, _I thought heatedly, _I'm going back where I belong. And then, this will all just be a bad dream. _

Chapter Sixteen:

I guess one or both of them heard me leave, because seconds after I left, I heard, "Hey, Knuckles wait up!"

I didn't even glance behind me as I heard two sets of footsteps running up to me.

"Knux, where are you going?" I heard Sonic ask.

"Home," I said shortly.

"Why? I mean, there's no need to go back to your apartment."

"No, I'm going home, tomorrow."

"Wait, what are you…?"

"I'm going back to Angel Island."

"WHAT!?" I heard Tara shriek. She grabbed my arm. I finally stopped, but still refused to look at either of them, "Knuckles, you can't go back to Angel Island!"

"You can't stop me," I replied.

"Knux, why are you going back there?" Sonic asked.

"Hm, gee, I wonder why," I said glaring at him.

He seemed a bit taken aback, as if he wasn't to blame.

"Knuckles, please, don't leave!" Tara begged.

I didn't give her a single glance as I said, "I'm going to the hospital tomorrow, then packing my things and going to my _real _home."

"But… Knuckles…" Tara said her grip tight on my arm.

"Tch, come on Tara," Sonic said as he grabbed her other arm, "We don't need this jerk."

"Oh, _I'm _the jerk!?" I snapped whirling around to face him. This caused a lot of people nearby to stare at us, but I didn't care.

"Well, yeah, I mean, ever since Tara and I have started going out, you've just been angry at us all the time."

I laughed wryly. "Right, 'cause that just completely topples over what you did to me!"

"Well, I mean… Look, what I did wasn't _that _bad!"

That really made me snap. In a flash, I punched Sonic in the face as hard as I could. He fell to the ground in pain and shock.

"Sonic!" Tara immediately let go of my arm and crouched down beside him. He got up on one knee and stared up at me, holding the right side of his face in pain.

"I can't believe how ignorant and egotistic you are!" I yelled, "You snatch up my ex-girlfriend the first chance you get, you use her as a symbol of how you screwed me over, you sleep with her and broadcast it to the world, and you say _it_ _wasn't that bad!_ So you know what!? I HAVE HAD IT!"

"Knuckles, please don't blame him!" Tara begged.

"Oh, you know what, that's right, you're also to blame!" I said as I turned my anger towards her, "You knew… you_ knew _how much I loved you, and still love you, and you go running off to sleep with my best friend and act like it's perfectly fine and dandy! It's like you two have this fantasy that all three of us can go skipping off into the sunset together!"

"Knuckles, I never meant to hurt you, honestly!" Tara said as tears filled her eyes, "I just didn't know…"

"Don't give me that bull crap about how you didn't want to go out with the person you were rooming with! I mean, heck, you're rooming with Sonic, and you're dating him! Explain _that_ to me!"

"I mean… I don't know…"

"You know what, I'm going to hope and pray that I never have to see either of you ever again, and you'd better pray that you don't either! The two of you make me sick. I'm going back where I belong."

As I started to walk off, I heard Sonic say, "What, to loneliness, 'cause that sure got you somewhere!"

I froze. Was he really willing to push me further?

"Oh yeah, where?" I challenged.

"Your own stupid head, that's where!"

I turned around and glared at him. I waited for him to continue.

"Being on your own stupid island never got you any girls, or any friends except for me, which you should be thanking your lucky stars for, now did it!?" He was standing now, looking me right in the eyes, "And you know what, I have to agree with you on this one! You and everyone else in this town were so much better off when you kept your balls to yourself! Maybe instead of cowering in a little hole and waiting to jerk off to the first girl who came to you, maybe you should've actually gotten to know some people! But oh wait, that's right, you and your ancestors were never very sociable, were they!? And I guess you could blame your dad for making you forever alone for at least eight years of your life! But wait, he's dead, so why are you still crawling back to your little safe haven!? You're trying to be all tough and manly Knuckles!? You're trying to jerk me off!? Well maybe you should stop acting like an illiterate two-year old and start acting like an actual person!"

Something snapped in my mind… I don't know what it was, but it snapped… Everything I'd been holding back on… My father's death, my incapability of having many friends, my gullibility that always ended up ruining everything… All of it just swirled into one dangerous torrent.

I couldn't feel anything anymore… I just did whatever my mind told me. My fists seemed to know exactly where they were going as they hit Sonic's face over and over and over again. I could hear Tara screaming beside me. I heard people nearby gasping in horror at the scene. I couldn't control myself. I just kept hitting him and hitting him, and hitting him…

After what felt like eternity, I felt someone grab my arms to pull me back. My vision focused again, and I started to feel my body again. I saw Sonic lying on the ground, his face bloodied and bruised. Tara kept shaking him and trying to get him to wake up, but he didn't move. I felt tears flowing down my cheeks, but I had feeling they had been there since I started my attack. I couldn't help but stare in shock at the scene in front of me.

Had I killed him…? Had I killed the one person that had stuck with me for all these years…? He had been one of the only people that stayed as my friend despite my temper…

I felt everything become a blur… My body began to shake violently… My stomach started to hurt… My head felt dizzy…

Not knowing what else to do, I escaped the grasp of the persons' arms and ran as fast as I could and as far away as possible, the last of the fireworks fading in the sky.

Chapter Seventeen:

I went straight back to my apartment, collapsing on my bed into tears. I put my face in my pillow, sobbing out of control. I couldn't believe myself anymore… I didn't even want to live anymore… There was no point in living… I was going to die anyways… I didn't know if Tara was ever going to talk to me again… Sonic definitely wouldn't… I eventually cried myself to sleep, feeling worse than ever before…

I woke up on my back, tears still lingering from the night before. I didn't even want to move. I just wanted to lay there until I died. I didn't even care that I had to go to the hospital. I just wanted to stay there.

At least an hour passed, and I still hadn't moved an inch. My stomach growled slightly, but I didn't pay attention to it. I didn't think about anything. I didn't feel anything. My stomach pains made me cringe slightly, but I still refused to get up. I would just die then and there, and that would be fine by me.

But after a few more minutes, I heard the door to the apartment open. I didn't even flinch. I just stared at the ceiling.

I heard someone come into my room, but at first I couldn't tell who.

"Knuckles?" Tara. I was afraid that at first she would yell at me and slap me or something. But she didn't. She just stood beside my bed.

"Sonic's in the hospital," she said, "You beat him up pretty bad last night."

I didn't respond.

"Knuckles, I'm sorry I did this to you. I'm sorry I made you like this. I know you'd never want to hurt Sonic that badly. I'm sorry I did this to your friendship with him."

"…"

"Don't you have to go to the hospital?"

"…"

"Knuckles, if you need to go there, you should go."

"…"

She sighed. "Come on, I'll help you."

My body co-operated as she put me in a sitting position. I kept my head down, not daring to look her in the eyes.

"I won't go with you if you don't want me to, but just promise me you'll go. I don't know why you need to go, but you said you did, so it must be important."

"…"

"Knuckles, please… Don't do this to yourself…"

"…"

She took one of my hands. I looked up at her, a dead expression on my face.

"I care about you, Knuckles, I honest to God do. So please, don't destroy yourself like this. I know that I caused this problem in the first place, but please, don't let me ruin your life."

"…"

"You have a family, right?"

I slowly nodded.

"Think about what they would do if they saw you like this. Don't you think that they would be worried about you? Don't you think they'd be desperate to get you back to normal?"

I nodded.

"Well then, that's your motivation! You have a family to think of! There's so much to live for! Please, don't give up on life like this!"

"All I do is mess things up," I replied, "I fall for the stupidest tricks and everything's ruined. I try to do the right thing and I only make things worse. I try to reach out to people, but I only get them hurt, or I lose my temper and they never want to see me again."

"That's not true!"

"My dad hated me before he died. I got into a huge argument with him, and then he never spoke to me again. He wanted no part of me ever again."

"But you said that he sacrificed himself for you."

"Out of guilt. He tried to kill me before he sacrificed himself."

She didn't respond to that. Instead, she sighed.

"I'm still here, aren't I?"

I nodded.

"Then that means I didn't leave after you lost your temper, right?"

I nodded.

"Please Knuckles, just go to the hospital. I won't follow you, I swear."

I thought for a moment. I slowly rose to my feet and started to head out the door, Tara staying where she was.

After I had woken up from my deep sleep, the nurse told me that I was done with my session. I carefully sat up as she unhooked the tube from my arm. She studied me for a second.

"You don't seem like yourself today, Knuckles…"

I shrugged. "Rough night."

"It happens. Come back in two weeks, ok?"

"Ok."

I knew I might not be back. I might be long gone, back in my real home.


	7. Chapter 18, 19 and 20

Chapter Eighteen:

I went back to the apartment, having no energy whatsoever to pack. So I just decided to fall asleep again for a few hours.

After my sleep, I just continued on with life as usual. I decided against packing my things and leaving. I wanted to make sure that Sonic got out of the hospital. Apologizing and sticking around 'til he got better was the least I could do. I thought about actually going to visit him, but decided against it after remembering our huge fight.

I settled with calling Tara to ask how he was doing.

"He's doing better," she said, "he opened his eyes today. He talked a little bit. It's a work in progress, but he's definitely getting there."

"I assume I'd only make things worse if I went there…"

"Well, he's asleep right now, so I guess you could drop by until he wakes up."

I hesitated before responding, "Ok, sure. I'll be over in a few."

"Ok, see ya in a bit."

I hung up and sighed, not entirely sure that I should keep my word. But I was never one to break a promise, so I reluctantly walked out the door and headed down the street.

I didn't even consider getting flowers, because let's be honest; it would be pretty gay if I got flowers for another guy. Sonic would never let me choke something like that down once he was well again.

I entered the hospital for the second time that day. One of the nurses greeted me at the desk.

"Hi Knuckles! Are you not feeling well again?"

"No. I'm just here to visit a friend of mine." I kind of murmured on the word friend.

She told me Sonic's room number and I went on my way. When I finally reached his room, I peeked inside the door, just to be safe.

Sonic was sleeping soundly in the bed, Tara sitting at his side. She was holding his hand as she watched him. I opened the door a little bit wider as I slipped inside. I quietly closed it behind me.

Tara looked over at me.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey."

I stood beside her as I examined Sonic's face more. Tara was right… I had beaten him pretty bad…

Both of his eyes were swollen and purple. His cheeks were swollen as well, small stitches on his chin. I couldn't believe I had busted him that bad…

"How is he?" I asked.

"Tired," she said, "The nurses gave him a sedative because his head hurt. He's been sleeping for a while."

I gave her a small smile. "Well, no dip Sherlock. I can see that."

"Shut up," she said, laughing softly.

"But has his wounds gotten any better?"

This time, it was her turn to smile. "What do you think? It all happened last night."

"Yeah… you're right. Listen, about last night… I'm sorry I ruined everything."

She shrugged. "I could feel the tension between you two building. I knew something like that was going to happen. One of you was bound to snap, but I just couldn't anticipate when or how."

I smiled again. "You had no idea what you were getting into when you met us, did you?"

She smiled too as she looked at Sonic. "No clue whatsoever."

We both went silent for a little while. I looked at Tara from behind. I wasn't sure how to comfort her without being awkward about it… Should I put my hand on her shoulder? Maybe. That didn't seem like I was trying to seduce her at all, right? I could hug her… Nah. _That _would be a little awkward.

So, I decided to do nothing. After a few more minutes, I simply said, "Well, keep me posted about his condition, ok?"

She nodded at me. "Yeah, sure thing."

When I got to the doorway, she said, "Oh, and Knuckles."

I turned around curiously.

She smiled, her cheeks colored. "Thanks."

I smiled and nodded.

Chapter Nineteen:

For a week, I stayed in the apartment, doing nothing but being bored. I had adapted to be being bored though. Guarding the Master Emerald was no amusing task.

Tara told me that Sonic was gradually getting better, but he had a concussion, so it would still take some time. As I expected, she spent most of her time by his side, making sure he was recovering properly. But for some reason, she had been checking on me a lot too.

Sometimes she would call me and we would talk like this:

Tara: "Knuckles? Are you ok?"

Me: "Uh, yeah…"

Tara: *sighs* "Ok, good, just making sure."

Me: "Um… Ok…"

Tara: "Are you sure you're all right? I can go over there if you want me to."

Me: *groans* "Well, now that you say that, I am bleeding pretty bad…"

Tara: "WHAT!?"

Me: "Tara, I'm joking! Calm down!"

Tara: "DON'T JOKE ABOUT THAT!"

Me: "Ok, sorry…"

Tara: "…So you're ok right?"

Me: "YES!"

Tara: "I have to go. Call me if you need anything, all right?"

Me: *rolls eyes* "Trust me you'll be the first one I call."

Tara: "What was that?"

Me: "Nothing. Bye."

I thought it was strange at first, but the more I thought about it, I had been thinking about committing suicide just a week before.

But still…Just the way she fretted about me like _I _was the one in the hospital. Well, I guess I _had _gone to the hospital for a reason that was unknown to her or anyone else as a matter of fact. Maybe that was why…Yet…

The next day, Tara actually came to the apartment. I was a bit shocked to see her.

"Tara? What are you doing here?"

She smiled shyly. "Hey. You don't mind if I stay for a little while, do you?"

I shook my head. "Of course not."

She sat down next to me on the couch. She kept her head low as she said, "Um… I just wanted to see how you were doing…"

I smiled. "Y'know, you called me two hours ago to check on me too."

She looked up in shock, her cheeks red. "R-Really!?"

I nodded.

She hung her head in embarrassment. "Oh… Sorry…"

A minute passed. She finally spoke again after fidgeting with her bracelet. "Um… I also came to get the rest of my stuff…"

My heart sank as a frown formed on my face. "Oh… Right…"

Tara had been gradually moving her stuff to Sonic's place over the past week. But every time she came, she seemed to take her stuff out reluctantly. She always acted like there was a force field in the doorway that prohibited her stuff from ever leaving.

She hastily got up. "Um… I'll be back."

"Ok." I watched as she walked to her room.

A few minutes later, she walked out with her last suitcase in her hand. She put it gently down by the door then turned towards me.

"I-I hope you don't mind having a room to yourself…" she said nervously.

"Trust me Tara, I'll be fine."

"If you're sure…"

I nodded and showed no sorrow on the outside, but on the inside, I felt a twinge of disdain. She was such a hypocrite…

She walked forward and hugged me. I hugged her back, never wanting to let her go.

"Goodbye, Knuckles," she with melancholy, "I'll see ya around, ok?"

"Yeah, sure…"

We both stayed in each other's arms for the longest time, as if letting go of each other would completely sever our hearts.

But after that time, I was in for a real shock. Tara stood back a little, looking up at me as tears ran down her cheeks. I gave her a weak smile.

"Hey, there's no reason to cry…"

As I put my hand up to wipe her cheeks, she lunged forward and planted one on me. My eyes were wide open in shock as her lips continued to press against mine in a frenzied and almost desperate kiss.

At first, I wasn't sure what I should do. So many scrambled thoughts were running through my head. Why is she…? I thought she was dating…? I thought she didn't want to…? I thought…? I thought…?

I quickly pushed her off of me, my hands on her shoulders. "Tara, why did you do that!?"

She looked up at me with helpless eyes. Her lip trembled as she replied, "I-I… I-I…"

I waited intently for her to finish her sentence. But she broke free from my grasp, snatched up her suitcase and sprinted out the door, leaving me standing there, my mouth agape.

Chapter Twenty:

I didn't know what to think of Tara after that. Part of me said that she was a nymphomaniac. Another part of me said that she was just feeling upset since Sonic was in the hospital, but in that case, there was no need to kiss me. After all, we had been hugging at first. But I still couldn't help but wonder.

Anyways, a few days later, Sonic checked out of the hospital. His bruises were still healing, but he was at least able to stay up for longer than two hours. The doctors had said that he would have to watch his head a little more carefully since he had a concussion. His memory was a little blurry at first, but he gradually gained it back. So, yes, he remembered our huge argument. How do I know all this? Well, certainly not from Tara or Sonic. I had asked one of the nurses at the hospital instead.

Over the next few days, well, let's just say I heard nothing from Sonic or Tara. When I saw them on the streets from time to time, Sonic would just glare at me, and Tara would look the other way. I wondered whether or not Tara had told him about her kissing me. But I didn't care. After all, it seemed like all strings were detached at that point.

After a few more days, I went back to the hospital for another treatment. My stomach hadn't hurt, but I knew I had to go anyways.

So, as I fast forward again after blah blah blah, I was in a deep sleep, blah blah blah, I woke up and went back to the apartment.

My first thought when I went back was, there's no point in sticking around here anymore. Just pack your stuff and go.

So that's exactly what I did. I went straight to my room and started putting the small amount of stuff I had brought with me into my suitcase. I rolled it into the living room and took out my key.

But out of the corner of my eye, I saw an envelope on the floor. I assumed it had been slid in under the door.

Curious, I walked over to it and picked it up. I examined it as I held it with both hands. The envelope had golden borders and an ornate wax seal on it. I opened it up, removing the letter gently.

I don't want to bore you with the details, but basically, Sonic had invited me to a party at his place. I know; strange right? My first thought was that Tara made him do it so that we would make up somehow. But I think we both knew that that would never happen at this point in time. So then why did he invite me?

The party was that night, so I weighed my options. I could stay here and go to the stupid party, or go back to Angel Island, the place where I truly belonged.

I grinned to myself. Angel Island, definitely.

Without a single regret in my mind, I pulled my suitcase out into the hallway, locked the door, and went down to the lobby.

After giving the key back to the front desk, I was just heading out the door when, of course, Tara showed up. I almost ran into her, I was trying to leave so fast.

"T-Tara!?"

She looked up at me in shock. "Oh, Knuckles, are you going somewhere?"

"Uh, yeah I was just going to head back home."

Her face lit up slightly. "So you're not going to the party?"

"Uh, no, I'm not…"

She sighed, smiling. "Good."

I glared at her. "Excuse me?"

She stared up at me innocently. "Oh… No, I didn't mean it like that! I was just-…"

"Save it! I'm done with you people!" I pushed her to the side as I stomped out of the door, my suitcase right behind me. I didn't even dare to look back.

As I walked down the sidewalk, I couldn't help but look up at the apartment complex Sonic said he was staying at. I stopped walking for a few seconds and stared at it. Why did Tara not want me to go to the party? Did she really hate me that much?

I stared back at the apartment building I had stayed at. I grinned to myself. Maybe going to the party would annoy them to the point where they would leave me alone permanently. Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing. Loneliness was the life I knew, the life I was suited for.

Without a doubt in my mind, I walked back to the apartment complex.


	8. Chapter 21, 22 and Epilogue

Chapter Twenty-One:

After putting my stuff back in the apartment, I casually walked to the other complex. I didn't know exactly what I was going to do when I got there, but figured I would just make it up as I went along. When I finally got there, my feet froze at the door. I was extremely hesitant. It wasn't too late to just leave before I was missed. Not that I would be missed anyways. I took a deep breath as I slowly knocked on the door. I held my breath as the door opened and Sonic's face appeared around it. I stayed glued to the spot, unsure of what to do.

But to my surprise, Sonic smiled and pulled me inside. I looked at him in confusion.

"Good to see you could make it, Knux!" he said cheerfully, "Tara told me you weren't coming!"

"Uh, well… Change of plans…"

He put his arm around my shoulder. "So, how you been buddy?"

"Uh, pretty good, I guess… Uh, how you been?"

He shrugged. "Better than I was before. But let's not talk about that. Just relax and have a good time!"

I looked around and saw a diversity of different people. I don't know what you would call a typical apartment party, but this seemed to be it. I wasn't exactly sure of what to do; especially when Tara saw me.

She looked over at me in astonishment. "Knuckles? What are you doing here?"

Sonic walked away as she walked over to me. "Oh, uh, I changed my mind."

"You shouldn't be here."

I furrowed my eyebrows at her. "Why? Sonic seems fine with me being here."

"Knux, you don't understand you should go," she said urgently.

"Why are you so eager to get rid of me? Are you afraid that Sonic might find about your little move on me?"

Her face went pale. "I…"

"You didn't tell him yet, did you?"

"Knux, please don't complicate things. Can we just keep that between us?"

"Oh, so _I'm _the one complicating things!" My tone was bitter, but my volume was low.

Tara looked around to make sure that we hadn't created a scene. When she was sure that no one, especially Sonic, was watching, she replied, "Look, I'm sorry about doing that to you. Just please, don't say a word. Promise?"

I sighed. "Fine. Whatever."

I walked away from her right after, trying to avoid any more contact with her or Sonic.

Chapter Twenty-Two:

After only an hour, I was bored out of my mind. Like I've said before, I'm not very social. I just kind of sat off to the side, not entirely sure of what to do. I just crossed my arms behind my head and started thinking about different stuff. My mind started to wander off when Tara came up to me.

"Knuckles, you really should leave," she said frantically.

"Why?"

"Knuckles, please, just trust me. You should go."

"Yes, but _why?_"

"Just trust me, all right."

"Y'know, you saying that only makes me want to stay longer."

She grabbed my arm. "Knuckles, you have to leave! Please, before it's too late!"

As she finished her sentence, I heard a clinking of a glass. I looked over in curiosity as I saw Sonic standing in the middle of the apartment. Everyone went silent.

"Thank you all for coming tonight," Sonic said, "I know it's been a while since I've seen most of you since my… incident…"

I felt myself shrink slightly.

He smiled. "But, as you all know, I'm just as good as I was before. And that's all thanks to my girlfriend, Tara." He smiled and nodded slightly at her. She gave a small smile back.

"And I know some of you have been wondering, because you've already asked me, why is it that I invited Knuckles here if he's the one that landed me in the hospital in the first place?"

I shrunk even more. I could feel almost everyone's eyes on me.

"Well, the simple answer is, fighting with him just won't do either of us any good. So, I invited him here so that we could make up."

He turned and smiled at me. "So you know what? I think we should put it behind us. What do you say Knux?"

I smiled and nodded. There were some whispers among the other guests.

"I know what you're thinking," Sonic said, "Why am I so easily forgiving him? Well, I have to be honest. He wasn't the only one who messed up."

The crowd went silent.

"I said some pretty mean things to him that night. That's why he hurt me in the first place." He laughed. "To be honest, I deserved it. Every last punch." He turned back to me. "So, I'm sorry for everything I said to you that night Knuckles. Really, I am."

I smiled again and nodded.

Sonic smiled and nodded back. At first, people thought that was the end of it. And so did I. But unfortunately for me, that wasn't the end of it. The storm still hadn't come. But it was coming now. And I was like a ship out on the sea, at first only seeing the bright sky and calm waters.

"Ok Knux, now it's your turn!" Sonic announced. This caused a few people to pay attention again.

"What?" I felt totally caught off guard as Sonic yanked me off my seat and planted me right onto the middle of the floor.

"Ok," he said, "your turn."

I stared at him in bewilderment.

"Well, go on!" he said.

Everyone was paying attention now. I leaned closer to him. "What am I supposed to do?" I whispered.

"Well, apologize of course!"

I looked around nervously. I sighed. "I'm sorry for punching you Sonic."

He looked at me expectantly. I just stared at him.

"And…" Sonic said.

"And what?"

"And… What else are you sorry for?"

"I don't know…"

Sonic sighed. His voice grew a little bit louder as he said, "Oh come on! Have you really forgotten about what you did to Tara and I?"

You could've heard a pin drop the room was so quiet. The waves were getting rougher. Not too rough, but just enough to make the ship roll. The gray clouds were gliding overhead.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Oh, Tara didn't tell you? You were dating her at the same time she was dating me."

I looked over at Tara. Her head was down, her hands fidgeting in her lap.

"What are you talking about? You started dating Tara after she broke up with me."

Sonic shook his head. "No, Tara started going out with me only a day or two after you guys first hooked up."

My head felt numb. I stared at him. There was no way… The waves were getting bigger. The clouds had grown black. I could hear the thunder and feel light rain, but that was just the warning.

I looked over at Tara. I walked up to her. "This isn't true, right?"

Nothing. She didn't even look up at me.

"Tara? Tell me he's lying."

Nothing.

"Tara, did you go out with Sonic a day or two after we first hooked up?"

I could see a tear fall onto her hand. She slowly nodded.

This was it. This was the answer to everything. The reason why she broke up with me. The reason she told me not to come to the party. This was it… The lightning had come now. The rain was pouring now. The lightning hit the ship. A flame rose up. My walls came crashing down. My wings fell off. Whatever you want to say. Bottom line, I crashed.

She had cheated on me… With my best friend… This was so much worse than what I originally thought… Tara had cheated on me… She had somehow managed to go out with me and Sonic in the same week... That harlot… So she never really loved me… She just wanted to see who was better in bed…

No one had dared to make a sound. My head was down, a few tears of my own falling onto the floor. My head started spinning. The cramps started in my stomach again. I did the first thing my head told me to do; run.

I whirled around and sprinted out the door and down the staircase, never once looking back.

Once I was back at my apartment, I kneeled down by the bed and started crying into the comforter. I never should've gone… I should've just gone back to Angel Island like I wanted to. I don't know how long I cried to myself, but after that time, I heard someone come in behind me.

"Knuckles?" Tara.

"Stay away from me…"

"Knuckles, please just let me explain…"

"There's nothing to explain!" I yelled, "You slept with me and decided you didn't like it so you found the next person, tried him out, decided you liked him, and stuck to him!"

"Knuckles, that's not it…" She put a hand on my arm.

I jerked my arm away. "Don't touch me, you liar!"

"Knuckles, I never wanted to hurt you."

"Well, maybe you should've thought about that before you ran off to date someone else at the same time as me!"

"Knuckles, I love you… Really, I do…"

"Oh, is that right?"

"Yes. It was Sonic. He came to me. I didn't go to him."

"That still doesn't excuse the fact that you went out with him at the same time as me."

"He told me that you didn't like me. And I'm sorry to say it, but he was pretty convincing about it."

"I DIDN'T LIKE YOU!?" I yelled, "For Aurora's sake, I slept with you!"

"I know, I know! But he told me that the only reason you went out with me was to sleep with me. That's why I dated both of you. When I realized that he had lied to me, I tried to break up with him, but he tried to convince me to keep going out with him. I didn't want to be mean, so I kept going out with him. The whole relationship was a lie. He threatened to tell you about how I had cheated on you, so I had to break up with you. Knuckles, please understand. I never stopped loving you."

"So… You never loved Sonic, but you always loved me," I said turning towards her.

She nodded. "Sonic's a skunk bag. He has such a huge ego. And he even sleeps with me really fast. I guess he lives up to his name in everything."

I couldn't help but laugh. It hurt my stomach, but I didn't care. Tara started laughing too. After a few minutes, we both looked at each other. Our eyes started closing as we leaned in and kissed each other. We kissed for a minute before pulling back. She stayed in my arms as she smiled at me.

I looked at the floor. "I guess I have some explaining to do too."

"What do you mean?"

"You wanna know the whole reason I came here in the first place?"

She nodded.

"Tara, I'm sorry I never told you, but a few months ago, I was diagnosed with cancer."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

I smiled weakly. "I guess we both had our secrets, right?"

"But… How did you get it?"

"My dad did some experiments on me when I was just an egg. It made me more powerful so that I could protect myself. But it turns out it had a consequence. A pretty deadly one that my dad didn't count on."

"Oh my gosh… So the whole reason you went to the hospital…"

"Was to get chemo. And you wanna know what they told me last visit?"

She nodded.

Tears formed in my eyes. "I only have a few days."

"Oh my gosh… Knuckles…" She hugged me and let me cry into her.

"I started feeling really weak at the party," I said, "so I think my time's almost up."

"It's ok Knuckles. I'll go to the hospital with you."

"Thank you."

Epilogue:

On the way to the hospital, Tara had to help me to stay up. I explained to her that when I had learned about my cancer that I wanted to do everything I hadn't done before. I told her I wasn't using her, but I had slept with her on our first date because I wasn't sure that I had enough time to do it later. I told her that I wanted to see Sonic again before I died as well.

When we got to the hospital, I was almost immediately taken to one of the rooms. They hooked me up to a heart monitor. The nurses said that I didn't have any more than a few days. Tara stayed with me the whole time. The nurses had told my family about what had happened. They would be with me in a few hours.

Once they came, my mom was instantly worried. She practically yanked my hand off as she grabbed it. She started crying and yelling at me for not telling her sooner.

I laughed. "Mom, it's ok."

"IT'S OK!? My son has cancer and he tells me that he's ok!"

Tara laughed slightly. I could see Wynmacher trying to calm her down. Kneecaps shook his rattle and giggled in his stroller.

After a few hours, it started getting harder to breath. My stomach started hurting worse to the point of cringing. The nurses put a mask on me so it was easier to breath. I felt myself starting to black out from the pain. I closed my eyes and slept for a little while.

When I woke up, I saw my mom talking to one of the doctors. I started breathing heavier and trying to forget about the pain.

Tara sat beside me. "Knuckles, what's wrong?"

I was barely able to utter, "It hurts…"

My mom and stepdad came back inside with one of the nurses. They stuck an IV in my arm. I felt some fluids flowing into me. I didn't know what they were doing to me, but it made the pain fade away… My vision started to blur. Tara held one hand while my mom held the other.

"It's ok…" Tara said, tears in her eyes.

Tears were streaming down my mom's face as she said, "You can let go now, honey. Everything will be all right."

Before I knew it, my eyes closed, never to open again.

I felt myself flying up through the sky. Where I was going, I had no idea. When I landed, I found myself in the middle of a grass field. I looked over at a hill nearby. I saw my father standing there with his back to me. He turned around and looked at me. A tear fell down my face as I walked towards him.

~In dedication to my great-aunt Sis, who died on the night of February 15, 2013 due to her battle with cancer.

Your body may be gone, but your laughter still rings in our hearts. We shall never forget your smile and kindness towards others.

~I shall love you, now and always, your great-niece.


End file.
